PSSA BOUND: St Mary's Primary School athletes (front, left) Liam Kennedy, Cody Kelso, (back, left) Rory Thornhill, Sam Murphy and Gabe Sio all shone at Polding last week. Photo: NICK McGRATH 0911nmstmarys1
ATHLETICS
By NICK McGRATH
SOME of Orange's most promising little athletes have progressed through to the NSW Primary Schools Sports Association championships next month after starring on the Polding stage last week.
St Mary's Primary School stars Sam Murphy, Cody Kelso, Rory Thornhill, Gabe Sio and Liam Kennedy will represent Polding over two days from October 17 at Homebush after winning a swag of medals at the Catholic schools championships at Newcastle last week.
Murphy, Kelso, Thornhill and Sio combined to take out gold in the junior boys 4x100 metre relay while Kennedy starred in the junior boys discus, throwing 27.94m to claim gold.
Sio also claimed individual medals in the 100m sprint and the long jump, winning gold and silver respectively.
St Mary's assistant principal Kerry Maher said the school had high hopes for both the relay team and Sio and Kennedy individually at the next level.
But all five athletes had already done themselves proud.
"St Mary's is very proud of the representative achievements of all of our students. The students at the PSSA level this year have conducted themselves with great sportsmanship and performed with pride in themselves, the school and family," Maher said.
Thornhill believes his relay team has the speed to compete with the state's best come October.
"Our time from Polding would have been good enough for us to come third at last year's PSSA," Thornhill said.
"We beat Melinda Gainsford-Taylor's son at Polding. He came third with the Lismore team and Broken Bay came second."